Unexpected Love
by Christianah
Summary: Lara has discovered she had a burning desire for someone closer to home than she expected, but will she admit it? UPDATED APRIL 2007!
1. By the Pool

**Unexpected Love**

**By Amalinah**

**Author's Note: **This is a VERY random story, you have been warned! The idea struck me when I was bopping long to the wonderful TRL music, with Zip & Alister telling me what to do in Ghana. It starts just before Lara receives the message from Anaya about the dais in Bolivia, at the start of TRL. This is my first story on so be nice! ;)

**Disclaimer**: I own absolutely NOTHING related to TRL, that means the characters, locations, vehicles, ANYTHING!

**Chapter 1: By the Pool**

Lara walked slowly at the pool's edge, clothed only in her skimpy white bikini. She dropped her towel by the deckchairs, and leapt onto the statue fixed to the wall. She turned and grabbed the edge of the balcony overhead, shimmied along the edge to the other side, and sprang onto the other statue; she then swung onto the pole and landed on the upper balcony, overlooking the enormous pool.

She did not hear, however, when a lean figure slowly strolled into the room, below her. She took a deep breath, leapt onto the stone diving board and executed a perfect swan dive into the vast depths of the water below.

The watching figure jumped at her diving into the waters from above, but relaxed as he watched her doing lengths of the pool, only surfacing to retrieve a breath of air.

After watching her toned form zipping through the water, he decided to have some fun. Tip-toeing along the edge of the water, he sneaked up to the deckchairs and pocketed Lara's towel, guns, grapple and binoculars. He was just sneaking back out of the gallery, when she shot up out of the water, pulled out a knife from a strap around her leg and pinned him to the tiled floor, knocking her possessions from his arms, her eyes blazing with fierce strength.

'Dropping in for a dip then, Zip?' She asked, a trace of humour in her voice, Zip grinned, realizing he was going to have to pay for dropping in on Lara like this.

'I was just coming to, uh, pass on a message?' It was kind of true, but Lara could sense he had had an ulterior motive.

'Well, you know, I think you need to wash that smug grin off your face. Why not join me in the water.' And before he knew it, Lara had rolled off him, and gently pushed him with her feet into the pool. Lara dived in after him, tauntingly pulling him p to the surface, letting him gasp for air, before pulling him down again. After kicking upwards, Zip clung to the edge of the pool, gasping for air, choking with laughter.

'Very funny, Lara.' Zip turned, but she wasn't behind him any more. He looked around peering into the depths, before sensing a hand snake round his waist, yanking him back own into the cool depths. He spun around and grabbed the silently laughing Lara, pulling her down to the bottom of the pool with him. She teasingly straddled him, pulling him back upwards, with her legs wrapped around his hips.

After a long time wrestling in the water, the pair staggered back to the manor, parting to go to their separate rooms to dry off.

A few hours later, Zip saw Lara come back down the staircase, the sunlight shining from behind.

'Lara! I've got a memo from Anaya: She's heard about a rumour, something about an ornate stone dais, among other things, residing in Bolivia.' Lara walked over, snatching the mouse from Zip to read the email herself. She hummed to herself as her eyes scrolled over the letter. A few moment later, she straightened up, and said amusedly to Winston:

'Winston, how quickly can you pack me for Bolivia?'

**A/N:** That's it! For this chapter! Sorry if it was a bit short, I'm new to writing stories, and it's hard to get the ball rolling with this plot. Please review, I'd love to hear what you think!


	2. Back from Bolivia

**Unexpected Love**

**By Christianah**

**Chapter 2: Back from Bolivia**

Author's Note: Good grief, it's been a while, but I have had severe writer's block, so I'm grabbing at straws here, trying to get the ball rolling again, so this will be a bit of a dull chapter, and I am sorry for tweaking the dialogue from the game just a bit, but it's to fit in with the plot.

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING! (Apart from this brilliant story…)

'What I know is my business.' Lara replied defensively, she wasn't going to give away to this cocky stranger than she could help.

'So you don't then, and that you means you don't have a piece' The man drawled, then, pushing his dark sunglasses high up onto his nose, he muttered something inaudible to Lara, before clambering into the helicopter, before the tattooed woman, that Lara couldn't make out very clearly, slammed the door shut.

She returned her gaze to the swarms of armed mercenaries ahead of her, and then noticed the helicopter approaching on the left of the bridge.

Without pausing to think, she dived forwards, springing with all her might across the bridge, leaping over gaps creating by the rain of bullets from the helicopter. With one final leap, she grabbed the edge of the isolated land, and heaved herself up, yanking her pistols from their holsters, and opening fire on anything that moved.

A few minutes later, all was still, and she holstered her hammed guns, and took a look at the large, engraved slabs of stone that surrounded the oddly shaped stone in the centre, she approached it, and flashed back in her mind to when she was a child, and the patterns on the stone that glowed and stole her mother from her.

'There was more than one. Father, you were right.' She breathed, tracing her fingers over the complicated, twisting patterns.

'Say what?' she head Zip remark though her headset. Lara paused, before replying;

'Keep yourselves caffeinated, lads, we've some works ahead of us.'

'Means we're still alive, can't complain about that' Zip said gleefully.

Lara impatiently tapped her fingers on the luxurious leather armrest, as the Rolls Royce rolled onto the gravel outside the Croft Manor. She had been thinking over the man she had encountered in Bolivia. 'Cocky bastard.' She thought.

She threw open the heavy oak doors, and immediately headed for Zip, who was, as always, tapping away on the keyboard of the computer, looking intently at the screen.

'Alright, who was that?' She snapped

'You've heard of the Rutlands, right? Well, you've just met the senator's son, James Rutland.'

Alister emerged from behind Zip, and took a look at the screen too, not saying anything.

'Good morning Lady Croft.' (It was Winston.) 'Will your luggage require emptying or filling?'

'Emptying, I think. I'm going to research this Rutland fellow. I'll be upstairs if you need me, gentlemen.' She held eye contact with Zip as she said this, he raised an eyebrow questioningly.

Lara flopped down onto her four-poster bed, soaking up the comfort of being back at home, after scrambling through the ruins of Tiwanaku just hours before.

After lying there for a while, she sat up, slipped off her hiking boots and socks, then padded towards her bathroom, she was in need of a serious clean.

She turned on the 'Steam' option, then undressed and surveyed her naked form in the bathroom mirror: the odd light bruise here and there, but nothing too serious.

She flicked the two gold-plated taps at the head of the large, luxurious marble bath, and poured in some sweet-smelling oil, before sliding one foot in after another, and lowering herself into the warm depths.

After just lying there for quite time, Lara opened her eyes, seeing that the thick steam had filled the spacious bathroom, limiting her vision, she reached for her Chanel No. 5 soap, and caressed her entire body with it, pausing to lavish in the sensuous aroma.

Unbeknownst to her, Zip had been firing through file after file on the stone dais Lara had described, examining every detail, every record of its existence, it fascinated him. He had collected a small database of information, and thought that, since she was so worn out, that he should take it up to Lara.

He sent it to the heavy-duty printer, and tapped his fingers on the plastic cover as it whizzed away.

Lara flicked on the shower head, and let it drench her deeper, washing off soapy bubbles that clung to her form, then lay down in the bath, closing her eyes, relaxing totally and completely.

Zip stapled the database together, and nervously set off for Lara's room. It wasn't particularly hard to find, once you could tell the almost identical heavy oak doors apart. He admired the suits of armour and collected relics from exotic locations that adorned the walls.

He knocked on Lara's bedroom door, there was no answer, but it was unlocked, so he quietly pushed it open. Zip noticed Lara's backpack and her well-used hiking boots lying near to her bed, he saw steam curling out from underneath the bathroom door, and a devilish grin flickered on his lips….

A/N: There we are! I promise to get the next chapter out within a week or so, so stay tuned!

Any reviews/comments/suggestions you might have would be much appreciated!


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